FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 15, 2024

CONTACT
Email: [email protected]
Juan Gastelum, 213-375-3149
Emily Morris, 213-457-7458

NILC Taps Kate Kahan as Executive Vice President of Programs

WASHINGTON — The National Immigration Law Center (NILC) and NILC Immigrant Justice Fund (IJF) this week welcomed Kate Kahan, a nationally recognized advocate for racial and economic justice, as executive vice president of programs.

Kahan has spent three decades building power and fighting for justice at the local, state, and federal levels, including 10 years in the immigrant rights movement. She got involved in activism as a single mom on welfare and led a welfare rights organization as well as a feminist activist organization before working on the Senate Finance Committee on low-income issues, childcare, child welfare, unemployment insurance, and tribal affairs.

Kica Matos, president of NILC and IJF, said: “Kate Kahan is a powerhouse advocate whose deep professional and lived experience will help NILC further our mission to defend and advance the rights and opportunities of low-income immigrants and their loved ones. Her successful track record of coalition building and political organizing will help build the power of the immigrant rights movement and strengthen NILC’s capacity to promote justice, equality, and dignity for immigrants.”

Before joining NILC and IJF, Kahan served as the chief of strategy and partnerships at People’s Action. She also led Community Change’s federal advocacy work for 13 years, where she worked on building political power through grassroots organizing; promoting immigrant rights, economic justice, and racial and gender equity; and strengthening capacity in the social justice movement. Kahan also held senior positions at the National Partnership for Women & Families and the Vera Institute of Justice working on labor standards and criminal legal reform.

Kate Kahan, executive vice president of programs at NILC and IJF, said: “I am honored to join NILC, an organization that shares my commitment to fighting poverty, advancing racial equity, and building community power to achieve a world in which all of us, regardless of immigration status, have the freedom to thrive.”

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 7, 2024

CONTACT
Email: [email protected]
Juan Gastelum, 213-375-3149
Emily Morris, 213-457-7458

NILC Statement on Border Deal Vote

WASHINGTON — Kica Matos, president of the National Immigration Law Center and the NILC Immigrant Justice Fund, issued the following statement in response to the Senate vote to consider a deal that would decimate the U.S. asylum system in exchange for short-term foreign aid:

“It has long been clear that Republicans in Congress were never serious about resolving the issues in our immigration system and are only interested in weaponizing fear to score political points. It is unsurprising that this deal is poised for failure, and it never should have been introduced in the first place.

“Immigrants are essential members of our communities who move the country forward. Throwing immigrants under the bus in exchange for short-term, unrelated foreign aid is an enormous political and moral miscalculation. Democrats must approach immigration from a position of courage and recognize immigrants as a strength to our nation. We urge Congress to reject this framework and recommit to building a functional immigration system that centers the dignity and humanity of immigrants.”

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 4, 2024

CONTACT
Email: [email protected]
Emily Morris, 213-457-7458
Juan Gastelum, 213-375-3149

NILC Statement on the Supplemental Funding Deal

WASHINGTON — Kica Matos, president of the National Immigration Law Center, issued the following statement in response to the released text of the supplemental funding deal that would decimate the U.S. asylum system, among other dangerous provisions, in exchange for foreign aid:

“This bill is not worth the incredible price it would exact – more families separated, more children detained, and more people sent back to face persecution, torture, and even death. Instead of enacting draconian policies that create more chaos, we urge the White House and Senate Democrats to change course, reject this framework, and recommit to building an orderly, humane, and functioning immigration system.”

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